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Memorandum

To: Aaron Schab

From: Andrew Sedgwick

Date: February 16, 2014

Subject: Writing to Define and Describe


This memo gives the technical definition and technical description of a word or
phrase that you wanted. I chose to define and describe computer-aided design
(CAD), a largely used phrase in the engineering field. Here I will define the audience,
the need, and the placement for CAD.

Audience

The audience would be any construction company that is in need of a way to present
their house, office, or building designs to customers.

Need

The customers would want to see their house, office, or building before it is built, so
that they can make sure it is what they want to invest in. They would want to see the
design and make sure it has the features they want. The construction company
would like a way to convince their customers that they are the company that will
construct the correct features for them.

Placement

The technical definition and description would be placed on a webpage that
describes new ways to create 3D representations of new designs. It would be at the
beginning of the webpage and would give an overview of how this can be achieved.
It would appeal to those that are unaware that such software exists.










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Technical Definition: Computer-Aided Design

Computer-aided design is the use of computer software to create visualization of
components by modifying, analyzing, designing, creating, and optimizing these
components.

Software Programs
There are many computer-aided design programs that have been developed to do
different jobs depending on the need. In engineering there will be software
programs such as SolidWorks, CATIA, and NX. In architecture they would use
software programs such as Auto-CAD and CADD. These software programs have
many uses.

Uses
Computer-aided design is used to create 3D models of engines, houses, and different
objects that a person would like to visualize. CAD is used to create drawings of these
models so it could later be machined or built by someone else. CAD is used by artists
or architects to create floor plans of a house they may have designed. This allows
them to create life like models of something without actually building it. CAD is used
to create optimization of a model such as seeing how much stress a beam can hold
before it fractures.

Examples
Using CAD software programs is like creating a prototype of a design idea that a
person has, or like creating a rough draft for a paper. In a typical CAD design an
engineer would create a sketch of a model. This sketch would be like generating an
outline for a house. Once the sketch was complete the engineer would generate a
solid model by extruding the sketch into the 3D component. This 3D component
would be like seeing the house completely constructed as a 3D model but on a
computer screen. After creating the 3D model the engineer could then run
optimization tests on the components of the model to make sure it will work once
constructed. Optimizing the model is a way to use software to determine if your
model will function properly when built. This is like running tests on a truss for a
house to make sure it will support the roof of the house. Once the optimizations
have been run the engineer can then create drawings of the newly modeled house.
These drawings are the blueprints to creating the house. They would provide
dimensions, views, and parts lists of everything needed to construct the home.








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Technical Description: Computer-Aided Design

Computer-aided design is an efficient way
to represent 3D models of ones design. CAD
is created through programming. The way
one is able to achieve these
computer-aided designs is through different
programming languages. In order to create
the CAD software one has to use a computer
language system such as C or C++ to write
what is known as a system of code that will
tell the computer to do something.
Computer languages such as those given
above achieve the computational aspect to
the software. Figure 1 shows the interface
of the programming language C.

In order to get the CAD software the
creators also needed a graphical
aspect. To do this they used what is
known as graphical user interface.
The graphical user interface allows
the creators to make a system that
uses windows, menus, or other
icons to perform a command. It will
allow them to make the interface
however they would like so that it is
appealing to the users. Figure 2 is an
example of a graphical user
interface where they can create the
specific interface they want. From
this is generated an interface much
like your desktop. It will run
multiple commands based off what
you click on.

Figure 2 (Visualise, 3)

The last major component needed to create CAD Software is the geometry aspect
behind the software. In CAD the most common geometry representation used is
boundary representation, which is a way to represent shapes using limits
(Boundary, 2).



Figure 1 (Allman, 1)
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Works Cited

"Allman Professional Consulting, Inc." Allman Professional Consulting Inc. N.p., n.d.
Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

"Boundary Representation." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 01 June 2014. Web. 16
Feb. 2014.

"Visualise Microcontroller Data with Megunolink Pro." Tronixstuff. N.p., n.d. Web. 16
Feb. 2014.